Perceived needs for gastrointestinal endoscopic training in surgical residencies

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Surgical Education

Background:

• Fiberoptic gastrointestinal endoscopy is crucial for managing surgical patients.
• Effective training in surgical endoscopy is essential for resident competency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the availability and quality of fiberoptic gastrointestinal endoscopic training in university surgical residency programs.
• To identify barriers to adequate surgical resident training in endoscopy.

Main Methods:

• A questionnaire was distributed to 126 university surgical residency program directors.
• Seventy percent of program directors responded, providing data on training availability, quality, and perceived adequacy.

Main Results:

• 59% of programs included endoscopy training, but only half of directors felt residents were adequately trained.
• Insufficient patient caseloads were common (e.g., <30 patients for gastroscopy/colonoscopy in 63%/89% of programs).
• Gastroenterology departments monopolized endoscopy in 41% of universities, impacting surgical resident involvement.

Conclusions:

• Surgical resident training in gastrointestinal endoscopy is often inadequate due to limited exposure and interdisciplinary challenges.
• Improving surgical endoscopy education requires dedicated faculty, concentrated rotations with sufficient caseloads, and improved collaboration with gastroenterology.